Bird Watching
by unifilar
Summary: Raven find herself watching birds at the park, and then finds herself watching a different kind of bird... RobRae oneshot, Raven's perspective.


**Authors Note:** Ha. A Rob/Rae one-shot to distract you from my series. I went a different angle on Raven in this (it's in Raven's perspective, if you didn't notice) than I usually do, tell me if you like it. I kinda enjoyed writing it.

Yeah. It's really short. Be happy about that, because I don't write short often.

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If you ask me, bird watching is for idiots.

You sit there, staring at some dumb creature who could probably drown if they looked up when it was raining. I inwardly scoff the people who brought binoculars and camouflage clothes to the park, just to watch a bluejay eat a worm.

I suppose I hold a lot of things with disdain, bird watching especially. I don't know if it's just the way I am, if I'm just bitter, if I just try to view everything pessimistically. Or maybe it's because I don't want to find anything good in the world I was going to destroy. You pick.

And yet, here I was, sitting on a dumb park bench, staring at this raven fixing up its nest. Yeah, a raven, as if I needed to add more irony to the situation. Stupid irony.

I guess my bitter attitude could be blamed on the fact Robin had suggested we take the day off at the park, where natural beauty bloomed at every corner. It was painful to feel the warm, soothing rays of the sun caress and give my form life. So I hide my figure inside my cloak, putting my hood over my head, hiding in the shadows. I didn't deserve this beauty. I didn't deserve the light that the sun gave me.

I could hear Beast Boy shamelessly flirting with some girls while they sat near the park's fountain as well as Cyborg and Starfire talking about the purpose of 'squirrels'. I tried to block it all out as I observed the raven clumsily put stick after stick into it's nest like a poorly-put-together machine.

Since he was moving as silent as death, Robin was able to sneak up and plop down beside me on the park bench. I started, my eyes widening at his sudden appearance before I quickly reclaimed my calm demeanor. My mouth opening to offer a sharp quip, Robin rudely cut me off.

"Aren't birds beautiful?" he asked me, his eyes fixated on the very same raven I was watching earlier. I gazed at him for a moment, wondering why he was talking to me, instead of enjoying this gorgeous day. Of all the things he could do, why sit with the pessimistic empath? I almost felt the need to resent him for choosing me over having some fun, but a deep part of me came to surface, telling me that I was actually glad for his company. I didn't want to sulk for five hours- I wanted to converse with _someone. _And it just so happens Robin was one of the few people I could stand being with. He wasn't constantly questioning my behavior, why I acted the way I did. Probably because he understand. And the very thought that someone accepted me...well, I didn't need to get into that.

"If you think rats with wings are beautiful, sure." I replied dryly, leaning back on the bench. A soft, amused chuckle departed Robin's lips, his gaze never leaving the raven.

"It's their sense of freedom I admire most." he told me a few moments after my witty response. I quirked a brow at him, listening quite intently from the shadows of my hood. "They're not attached to anything- they could go anywhere they wanted, and they don't have the kind of troubles we did."

Well, not too many people had to deal with the troubles we did. Not too many people had to worry if they'd survive another fight, if their _friends_ would survive another fight, if they were strong enough to face the day. But the Teen Titans had to worry about a lot of things.

"They're too stupid to have the kind of problems we do." I pointed out in my monotone, disinterested voice. But I was secretly wondering if Robin was amused by my sarcasm, if he was going to stay with me on this bench just so I wouldn't feel lonely.

I was in luck. Robin wasn't annoyed with my condescending comments, he just found them entertaining. He smiled that wonderful, contagious smile of his, a smile that was brighter than the sun.

"They're lucky." Robin mentioned, finally looking to me. Or, rather, looking to the darkness of my hood. I stared back at him, wanting to tell him that I agreed with him whole-heartedly, that I wanted to spend this day with him and the Titans. But instead I just shrugged and looked back to the tree.

Several minutes passed, Robin and I watching the raven in silence. It was as if the bird held us in a trance, and we felt perfectly fine with just staring without doing anything else. But Robin broke out the trance before I did, and stood from the bench. This woke me up, and I looked up to him, a bit distraught. I didn't want him to go.

"We're going to the arcade, Raven. Want to come?" Robin asked me, grinning. He added an earnest, "Please?" at the end, as if my coming would mean the world to him. And maybe it would.

I answered a bit faster than I wanted to. "Sure, I'll come." I replied, but made haste to tell him, "But I'm not playing anything." I didn't want him to actually think I would enjoy himself. Then he would become smug.

Robin's face brightened like a child who has just been told they could have a cookie before dinner. Hopping over the bench, the Boy Wonder began to walk over to Starfire, Beast Boy and Cyborg, whom were all impatiently waiting for us.

I lagged behind, getting to my feet. My eyes lingered on the raven, hesitant to leave the bird. Suddenly, from a nearby tree, a male robin fluttered down to help the raven build the nest. The raven examined the robin for a moment, as if asking why he was aiding her, then scooted a little closer to him to participate in finishing the nest. An odd pair, they were- the raven looked a bit bigger and scruffier, while the robin looked more energetic and clean.

I blinked with this new event, and heard the real Robin calling to me. "Come on, Raven- the arcade will close soon."

I smiled to myself as I watched the two birds work together, and raised my hands to confidently pull back my hood. Exposing my face to the sun, I took a deep breath of the wonderfully fresh air. I turned to join Robin and the others.

Maybe bird watching wasn't so bad...


End file.
